Kibbles & Bytes Blog

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  • How Does My Apple Watch Know My Heartrate?

    In this day and age, it’s easy to become blasé about technology. Understanding why a common device works has become less and less important as our gadgets become integrated into our lives and are more reliable than ever but occasionally my curiosity just gets the best of me.

    I remember from when I was younger going to visit people in the hospital and seeing the little white plastic clothespin-like thing clamped to a finger with a glowing red light emanating from it that fed heart rate data to the machine that went blip-blip-blip with each beat of the heart.

    Fast-forward a few years and now I wear that same technology on my wrist under my Apple Watch. Some sort of sensor sits against my skin and does the same thing. But how does it actually work?

    Short answer, long word: they use photoplethysmography, a method of detection which measures differences in light absorption.

    The bottom of those watches have a mixture of infrared and green LEDs and light-sensitive diodes that pulse back and forth hundreds of times per second and measure how much light is absorbed or reflected.

    Most of the time in order to sense your heartbeat the IR LEDs, which are just on the edge of our visual spectrum, are activated. If they aren’t doing the trick because of sweat or other interference the green LEDs are activated. Why green? On the color spectrum, green is the exact opposite of red and therefore is a more efficient color to use to detect the presence of blood in your veins.

    When blood is in your wrist after a heartbeat, it absorbs the light and signals to the watch that a heartbeat is occurring. In between beats, there is less light absorbed due to the absence of blood.

    That’s why it’s important that your watch fits snugly to your wrist and is unobstructed.

    How accurate is this method? A 2017 study showed that the displayed result was within 5 BPM of an ECG reading 95% of the time so reliable enough to track your activity and workout effectiveness for sure.

  • Speed Up Those Apple Watch Updates

    I run Apple beta software on my Apple Watch so I probably update the software a bit more often than most Apple Watch users. But I know you Apple Watch users will agree with me that the Apple Watch updates are painfully slow. As long as I am complaining, I don’t know why Apple requires a charged Apple Watch to be on the charger in order to complete the update. It probably is because that 12-hour charge on your Apple Watch might not be enough to cover the slow update.

    I can’t do much about the charger part but I can help show you how to speed up the updates. Your Apple Watch communicates with your iPhone via both BlueTooth and Wi-Fi. The Apple Watch prioritizes BlueTooth over Wi-Fi to preserve power. BlueTooth uses less power but it also is a lot slower transferring data than Wi-Fi in almost every case.

    If you disable BlueTooth at just the right moment you can force the Apple Watch to use Wi-Fi to do your upgrade. Believe me, it is a LOT faster. Unlike most Apple devices your Apple Watch does not download its own upgrades. You have to think about your Apple Watch as an extension of your iPhone, even if you have the cellular version.

    Let’s say you get a notice on your Apple Watch of an update, and you also see that notice on the iPhone. When you go to the Apple Watch app on your iPhone you can download the Watch update to your iPhone and it will then update your paired Apple Watch. This is not a tiny file and sending it over BlueTooth to your Apple Watch just takes a really long time. I am sure you have watched that update circle move like maple sap in the dead of winter.

    You can speed up this process by utilizing Wi-Fi instead of BlueTooth, but to do this, you will have to turn off BlueTooth at the right moment in the process. Here’s the steps to faster updates for your Apple Watch:

    1. Make sure that your Apple Watch is on its charger and charged to at least 50%. Your iPhone should be close to the Apple Watch. We are assuming from the start that both BlueTooth and Wi-Fi are active on your iPhone and your Apple Watch
    2. Open the Watch app on your iPhone and click on the My Watch tab
    3. Tap on General and then Software Update. If there is an update available you will see the version number, some notes about the new release and a Download and Install button
    4. Pushing on that button may trigger a request for your passcode, go ahead and enter that
    5. As the Watch app prepares to send the update to your Apple Watch you will see a message with “Estimated time remaining” just under the version number
    6. When the rough estimate of time remaining shows (i.e. “about 2 hours remaining”) and not before, it is time to switch to Wi-Fi by temporarily disabling BlueTooth. The timing is important here – don’t disable BlueTooth before you see the estimated time remaining alert.
    7. Open Settings*on your iPhone and choose *BlueTooth from the list
    8. Slide the toggle switch to Off. This shuts off BlueTooth on your iPhone. That means all your BlueTooth devices aren’t going to work while you do this upgrade but it isn’t that long.

    9. Go back to the Software Update screen on the Watch App on your iPhone and you will see a warning to turn BlueTooth back on. Click Cancel to continue. Without BlueTooth your iPhone and Watch will now communicate with the faster Wi-Fi protocol.
    10. Now watch that circle close up! You should see the estimated time decline dramatically. Once, the download has completed – meaning the iPhone has sent it to the Watch you will see the “Estimated Time…” change to “Preparing…”
    11. You will then see it say “Verifying…” and then you will have an active “Install” button. Tap the install button and enter your passcode if requested.
    12. Once the progress wheel appears on your Apple Watch your iPhone is no longer needed. Go back to Settings on your iPhone and slide the BlueTooth toggle back to on.

    This work-around is actually pretty easy, the main thing to remember is to turn off BlueTooth on your iPhone at the right time (just after the estimated time appears) and then to remember to turn it back on.

  • Hapy and his friend Denise are coming to visit this weekend. That should be some fun since we haven’t seen them since the fall. It is a good time for them to get away from Vermont! I know they will welcome our weather here.

    The President came to Key West this week so I had to take some time off to join the peaceful protest with a few hundred others. Our theme was One Human Family which is also the official adopted slogan of Key West. This little visit must have cost a few million for what seemed like a photo op. There were hundreds of motorcycle police from as far away as Miami leading a big motorcade. We all wore black (in the hot sun I might add) and carried signs and rainbow flags. Some local teachers brought their students who arrived to cheers from the crowd. The older students held signs about gun control and made me very proud of them and their teachers!

    Thank you for reading this issue of Kibbles & Bytes!

    Your Kibbles & Bytes Team,

    Don and Emily

  • What is new in iOS 11.3

    At the end of March Apple released updates to all four of its operating systems, but iOS 11.3 was the most notable. It boasts a variety of new features and other changes—you can think of it as the midpoint update between iOS 11’s first release and iOS 12, probably coming next September. All remaining updates to iOS 11 are likely to be minor maintenance updates.

    iPhone Battery Health

    The most anticipated change is the Battery Health feature that Apple promised to add in the wake of revelations that the company was quietly reducing the performance of older iPhone models (starting with the iPhone 6) to lessen the chance of unexpected shutdowns with weak batteries. You find the new Battery Health screen in Settings > Battery > Battery Health, and Apple explains it in detail here.

    If your iPhone battery is ageing, you may see a lower maximum capacity, and if your iPhone has shut down because of a weak battery, the screen will tell you that performance management has been applied. You can disable performance management if you prefer the iPhone shutting down to degraded performance, but it will turn on again the next time your iPhone shuts down. Finally, if your battery is bad enough, the screen will recommend replacement. Also, note that iPads running iOS 11.3 can better maintain battery health when they’re plugged into power for long periods of time. Be sure to upgrade if you have an iPad that stays plugged in all the time.

    Data & Privacy

    We haven’t yet seen this, but Apple says that iOS 11.3 (and macOS 10.13.4) will display a new privacy icon whenever Apple asks for access to personal information, as it might do to “enable features, secure Apple services or personalize an iOS experience.” The icon should be accompanied by detailed privacy information explaining the situation. In an era when every company seems hell-bent on collecting and exploiting our personal data, it’s nice to see Apple increasing the transparency of its data collection practices.

    Safari

    iOS 11.3 tweaks Safari in several small ways that make it easier to use and more secure:

    • Autofill now inserts usernames and passwords only after you select them on Web pages.
    • Autofill now works in Web views within other iOS apps.
    • Safari warns you when you interact with password or credit card forms on non-encrypted pages.
    • Safari now formats shared articles sent via Mail as though they were in Reader mode.
    • Favorites folders now show icons for the contained bookmarks.

    Other Improvements

    Apple made lots of other minor improvements in iOS 11.3. You can see a full list in the release notes, but those that we find most noteworthy include:

    • iPhone X users get access to four new animoji: a lion, dragon, skull, and bear.
    • iOS 11.3 adds support for the Advanced Mobile Location (AML) standard, which provides more accurate location data to emergency responders when Emergency SOS is triggered.
    • Podcasts now plays episodes with a single tap, and you can tap Details to learn more about episodes.
    • Apple Music now streams music videos uninterrupted by ads.
    • Apple News has improved its Top Stories feature and includes a new Video group in the For You collection.

    iOS 11.3’s improvements may not change the way you use your iPhone or iPad, but they’re welcome nonetheless, and Business Chat and Health Records should become more interesting as additional institutions sign on. And, of course, anyone with an older iPhone should check the Battery Health screen right away.

  • Apple Watch Series 3 is on my Wrist

    I have been a fan of the Apple Watch since the first one came out. I hadn’t worn a watch since I was 12 but I have had one on my wrist since the Apple Watch was introduced. The Series 3 Apple Watch with cellular has become an essential tool for me.

    What do I use it for? Well, here’s a short list:

    • Control my HomeKit gear – open and lock the door, adjust the thermostat, turn on the lights
    • Keep track of my sports scores – “Hey Siri, What’s the Cubs score?”
    • Get text messages and respond
    • Answer and make phone calls without my iPhone
    • Embarrass me by only occasionally meeting my move, stand and exercise goals
    • Check my heart rate
    • Open my hotel room door at Hiltons or Starwood
    • Go swimming
    • Wake me up with alarms while traveling
    • Carry my boarding passes when traveling
    • Pay for stuff with Apple Pay
    • Siri settles trivia disputes
    • Reminds me of meetings and calls
    • Send Apple Pay cash to my granddaughter
    • Get the news
    • Know the weather
    • Summon a Lyft or Uber
    • Give me directions – great for the directionally challenged, like me
    • Scan my email
    • Lock and unlock my car
    • Play music to my Beats X while I am chilling in the hammock
    • Control my Apple TV
    • Track my sleep
    • Keep track of my to-do list

    Of course it can do a lot more but these are the kind of things that I use my Apple Watch for each day. It has become an essential part of my digital life.

    Apple Watch Series 3 with cellular is packed with features to help you stay connected, be more active, and listen to your favorite music. Cellular is the ultimate expression of Apple Watch, giving you the freedom to go with just your watch. Track your run with built-in GPS and never miss an important call. Hang out at the beach and reply to a message. Or book a ride home. All without needing your phone. With faster performance, a barometric altimeter, and watchOS 4, Apple Watch Series 3 offers you the flexibility to go anywhere.

    Cellular really makes the difference. Now, I am free to roam without my iPhone in my pocket. It uses the same cell phone number as my iPhone so the connection is seamless. It uses the built-in cellular capability whenever it is not connected to your iPhone or Wi-Fi. Setting it up is easy and most carriers only add a small monthly fee.

    Apple Music customers can stream 40 million songs right to their wrist. You can listen to Beats 1 or any other Apple Music Radio channel with the new Radio app and the Music app has a new UI and automatically syncs curated playlists to Apple Watch. The watch can’t hold too many songs but as long as you are on cellular or Wi-Fi you have access to Apple’s enormous music library

    Apple Watch Series 3 is the fastest Apple Watch ever with a dual-core processor delivers up to 70% faster performance, faster app launch times, and an overall smoother user interface. The Apple W2 wireless chip delivers up to 85% faster Wi-Fi and is up to 50% more power efficient

    Apple added a barometric altimeter which measures elevation gain for outdoor workouts, such as running, hiking, skiing, and snowboarding. You get more Move and Exercise credit for moving uphill – which might be handy in Vermont. It also tracks how many flights of stairs you climb during the day.

    The Apple Watch Series 3 is swim proof (water resistant to 50M), so you can leave it on when you’re in the pool or the ocean and it has this cool little water expulsion system using the speaker to push out any water from the speaker.

    watchOS 4 makes the Apple Watch tick. The Siri watch face intelligently updates throughout the day, showing what you need when you need it. Smart activity coaching can help you close your rings every day (if only). The Workout app makes it easier to do multiple workouts in one session, and there’s also a new workout type—High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT). The updated Heart Rate app shows additional insights—while you’re resting, walking, or in the recovery phase after a workout. It also serves sleep monitoring apps that can give you some insight into your sleep patterns.

    I highly recommend the Apple Series 3 watch with cellular. We have them in stock at all locations!